[ILQSO] WX9U (op wo4o) 2010 IL QSO PARTY (long)

[Jarrod Cook]

Phil also probably wouldn't mind if you used Peoria Area Amateur Radio Club
instead of SMC, since I don't think SMC counts as a valid club in this
contest...  :-)

Jarrod
WX9JC

On Sat, Oct 23, 2010 at 9:43 AM, wo4o <wo4o at home-sweet-loans.com> wrote:

> Thanks for making this former Yankee (and –Buckeye- at that!)
> feel welcome during the 2010 IL QSO Party.
>
> Operating the IL QSO Party from IL was more fun than riding a
> John Deere tractor in an empty soybean field. (Sorry, that's
> not too clever but it's all I could think of at the moment.)
>
> Phil/WX9U graciously loaned his call sign to me for this event.
>
> A week or so prior to my trip to IL I set up a portable ARS at
> my TN QTH for a trial run. Chose a multi-band dipole for
> 20/40/80 to adhere to my K.I.S.S. plan. Hung the dipoles a few
> feet off the ground to trim for low SWR. (Worked Jim/AD4EB
> while he was mobiling in the TxQP. Also logged a few stations
> in the PaQP.) Tore down the portable ARS and packed it up.
>
> Friday, drove 7 hours to my dad's IL QTH. This time of year,
> his QTH is surrounded by acres and acres of plowed fields as
> far as the eye can see. In the distance, during daylight, one
> can see a string of wind power plants with their massive
> rotating propellers. Unfortunately, his QTH has no tall trees
> and Weeping Willows aren't much for antenna supports.
>
> Saturday, the portable ARS was set up, despite all the wind.
> Hung a 'clothes line' between two trees to hold the center
> insulator/balun up at 15'. Fired up the rig and tested
> everything. Being out in the middle of no-wheres-ville
> equaled no QRN. All worked well and was ready for Sunday's
> Party. Invested the remainder of Saturday and the next
> morning visiting with family.
>
> Sunday, a few minutes before Noon (Partytime), I fired
> up the rig, looked out the window and noticed the 'clothes
> line' had drooped a few feet.  Well, starting at a height of
> 15' and losing a few feet overnight was unacceptable. -hi
> I quickly ran outside and pulled one side of the 'clothes
> line' to raise the center back to it's original height and
> tied it off. I arrived at the Party a few minutes late but it
> was worth the delay knowing my antenna was back up to 15'!
>
> My primary goal was to enjoy the experience. I wasn't
> disappointed. Thankfully, Murphy was on vacation for the
> remainder of the Party. The next 7+ hours went as smooth as a
> hog happily sliding in slop.
>
> A Single County Portable has a very low probability for winning
> the In-State Portable Plaque because the County Line/Corner
> Portables have a superior scoring advantage. Therefore, I set
> my secondary goal for a Certificate, competing with other
> Single County Portables.
>
> Monday morning, I disassembled the ARS, packed up, drove home.
>
> Next year I may be more ambitious. To increase my County Mults
> and general QSOs, I may set up for SO2R for following mobiles
> with the secondary rig, add Internet access for spotting and
> add an amplifier to draw more attention while running stations
> on the primary rig. Then again, maybe not… (K.I.S.S.).
>
> To show my appreciation to Phil for lending his call to me, the
> score will be contributed to the Society of Midwest Contesters
> for Club Competition, rather than the Tennessee Contest Group.
>
> My thanks to all who worked WX9U in the 2010 IL QSO Party. My
> apologies to those who addressed me as “Phil” and I failed to
> offer any correction, but I was too busy trying to run up the
> score!  See you next year…
>
>
>          IL QSO PARTY Score Summary Sheet
>
>       Start Date : 2010-10-17
>
>    CallSign Used : WX9U
>      Operator(s) : WO4O
>
> Operator Category : SINGLE-OP IL PORTABLE SINGLE COUNTY
>             Band : ALL
>            Power : LOW
>             Mode : MIXED
>  Default Exchange : TAZW
>
>        Band  Mode  QSOs    Pts  Sec
>         3.5  CW      91     182    3
>         3.5  LSB     19      19    0
>           7  CW     147     294   57
>           7  LSB     84      84   21
>          14  CW      39      78   15
>          14  USB     52      52   12
>       Total  Both   432     709  108
>
>
>            Score : 76,572
>              Rig : TS850SAT
>         Antennas : Multi-band Dipole-Inverted Vee w/ Apex @ 15'
>
>
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